Paternal Instincts
by HarmonyBenderFreak
Summary: Matthew worries too much about his daughter. Sveta finds it absolutely adorable. One-shot, with so much fluff you're probably going to explode.


He woke up to the sound of a baby crying.

Matthew's eyes shot open as the wavering yells echoed through the halls outside of the room, his body jumping up and climbing out of bed without him giving it a single thought. He felt the sharp, cold edge of anxiety pierce his chest as his forehead creased with worry, the room suddenly feeling so small and stuffy that it was all he could do to keep his sanity at the moment to _get out._

His heart pounding in his chest and his lungs burning dully from the adrenaline-laced and not exactly necessary panic running through his veins, he all but threw open the door of his bedroom and practically ran to the nursery located about 6 meters away, the door hanging slightly ajar due to his rushing frenzy.

Matthew entered the nursery abruptly, immediately scanning his surroundings, breathing a sigh of relief when he confirmed that the only persons in there were himself and the wailing infant that lied flailing in her crib a few feet away.

His friends and family often called him over-protective and worrisome, but he could only bring himself to care about the happiness and well-being of his 4, almost 5 month old daughter.

He strode over to the white painted crib, peering over the railing to get a better look at said infant. Her smooth and normally pale face was scrunched up and slightly reddened from her cries. Short locks of pale blonde hair were brushed behind her pointed ears and hung above her eyes, which were sealed shut and dampened with tears.

But those eyes fluttered instantly as Matthew picked her up, his soft coos and warm embrace immediately silencing the young girl, surrounding her in a veil of comfort and safety. Her father cradled her in his arms, her small form fitting against his chest as if she were made to be held there.

"It's okay, baby girl", Matthew whispered, "Daddy's here now."

The baby's breathing slowly returned to normal, her forest green eyes glimmering dully in the light that entered the room through the open window, the moon bathing everything it touched in pale white rays. Matthew held her against his thin night shirt for what seemed like hours, his gaze and attention never leaving his daughter's now content features. Absentmindedly, he began to hum softly- a soothing lullabye he remembered being sung to him when he was younger- as the child fell into a peaceful sleep. Matthew had only seen a few things as beautiful as this before, and his heart swelled with the love he felt for his daughter, a small smile grazing his lips as he got lost in his thoughts.

"Has anyone told you how much of a wonderful father you are?"

His head whipped around to see the owner of the soft voice, Sveta, standing in the doorway. One of her clawed hands rested lightly on the door frame, the silver band of her wedding ring catching in the moonlight. She was clad in a light purple nightgown that had sleeves down to her elbows and a hem two inches above her knee. Her hair, which was left down instead of knotted into her usual long braids, was significantly darker than it had been when they had activated- and stopped- the Grave Eclipse fifteen years ago. Rather than being the lavender hue she had been known for among her friends, it was bordering a rich purple that was only a few shades lighter than Karis's eyes. She had changed a lot as the years had gone by.

The one thing that didn't change, though, was her familiar dark green eyes; the exact color as their daughter's.

Matthew smiled. "Paternal instincts, I guess."

Sveta's eyes sparkled as she took in the scene in front of her, the sight of her child in her husband's arms a memory that she would look back at many times in the future. She walked over to them, her padded feet brushing silently against the bare floor, and wrapped her arms around of of Matthew's. They both looked down at their resting daughter, her physical traits resembling both of her parents in varying amounts.

"She looks a lot like you."

Seeing her slim cheekbones, her hair, and the familiar arch of her forehead, Matthew guessed that maybe she _did_ resemble him at least a little.

"She has her mother's eyes, though."

Sveta's mouth twitched up at the corners, knowing fairly well that one of the only weaknesses Matthew would admit to having was looking into his wife's- and now his daughter's- emerald-colored irises, which were usually alight with passion and happiness.

She tilted her head upwards and brushed her lips against his. "I know."

**A/N: ...I honestly have no idea where the heck this came from.**

**Oh well. It's adorable, and packed to the brim with fluff! Just what I need after finishing the best sci-fi trilogy in the world and having to bear the feels of having both of my two favorite characters die in the last 100 pages AND getting my OTP crushed.**

**The best way to fix a broken headcanon is to patch it up with another; hence this comes along. *gestures to terrible fanfic that was written at 3 AM***

**How did you feel about the details I put in? Did you like the baby's resemblance to Matthew and Sveta? What do you think this little cutie's name should be?**

**Don't know how you guys are gonna feel about Sveta's new hair color, though. *sigh* But who cares? I always had a theory that some beastmen/women's hair got darker as they got older. It's not **_**that**_** strange.**

**Well, anyways, I hope you guys liked it. Thanks for reading (and though I'm not gonna force you to, a review would be extremely, insanely nice. Just saying, by the way. No pressure; no presure at all.)**

**Fruit Loop!**

**~Syna**


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